Together We Stand
by SimpleElegance1776
Summary: They're at it again...
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **_Scarecrow and Mrs. King_ belongs to Warner Brothers and Shoot the Moon Productions. Sadly, they're not mine. I'm just borrowing them to play with for a little while.

**Archive:** Yes, just ask first.

**Summary:** Now, that would be cheating, wouldn't it?

**Timeframe: **25 years after the show ended. (AU)

**Rating: **PG-13/T

**A/N:** Just for fun, I've added some new characters including a daughter in between Philip and Jamie and an older brother for Amanda (and others, but you'll meet them along the way). Also, Amanda's father never died, but Joe died when the kids were young, so Amanda was widowed, not divorced. Lee and Amanda have a daughter together. Just a warning…. this is somewhat AU. This is my first fanfic, and is definitely a work in progress. Please review… no flames please!

**Together We Stand**

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, it is my great honor and immense pleasure to present to you this year's graduating class," President Nicholas West announced to the large crowd of proud parents and family members gathered on George Washington University's great lawn. As the graduates rose to their feet to thunderous applause, the President turned his attention to the students. "And to the graduates, Anna and I would like to extend our best wishes for the future. Congratulations! You've made it!" As the president concluded his speech, the crowd cheered and the air was filled with black graduation caps with flowing buff and blue tassels.

Evelyn Jayne Stetson wove her way through the mass of celebrating students around her in order to reach her uncle before his Secret Service men ushered him away. She hiked up her graduation gown and quickened her pace as much as her high heels would allow. "Uncle Nick!" she shouted as he started to leave the stage.

He turned around as he heard her call his name. "There's my favorite graduate," he smiled and enveloped her in a warm hug. "Congratulations, Evie! I'm so proud of you."

"Thanks so much for being here today. It really means a lot to me that you took the time to do it." She released him from her tight embrace. "Are you and Aunt Anna still going to be able to make it over to Mom and Dad's tonight?" she asked him.

"Anything for my favorite niece. We'll be there, but, in order for me to do that, I need to get back to the White House and finish some things first," he told her, looking over her shoulder to see the First Lady approaching. "And, you should probably go meet up with your parents, little miss," he reminded her as his wife reached them.

"Hey, Evelyn. Congratulations, sweetheart," Anna greeted her niece with a hug.

"Thanks, Aunt Anna," came the reply as Evelyn gathered her things. "I'll see you guys later tonight." She smiled as she turned to run back to find her family.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: for disclaimer see Chapter 1**

"Do you see her yet, Amanda?" Lee Stetson asked his wife of 24 years. His well-trained eyes scanned the crowd for his only child.

"Lee, sweetheart, I wouldn't worry about her," Amanda assured him. "It hasn't been that long. She wouldn't have gone anywhere, and she is old enough to take care of herself, you know." She was patient with him. After all, this was her fourth child to graduate from college; it was only his first. "Besides, Nick and Anna are here. She might have gone to talk to them and found that cute, young agent that you brought to help with security. What's his name? Carter something-or-other?" She watched in amusement as her husband's fists clenched at her teasing. "Honey, she probably just got distracted."

"His name is Carter Lawrence, but that really doesn't matter," He corrected, annoyed that his wife even brought up the rebellious, young agent. Carter Lawrence, codename Sundance, had been nothing but a pain in Lee's side ever since the young man had started to work for the Agency. Though he hated to admit it, Carter was everything that Lee had been when he had started his career: cocky, rebellious, flirtatious, and (fortunately or unfortunately, depending on how you looked at it) very good at his job.

"Elizabeth and the boys never took this long to find us after their graduations," Lee added, as his thoughts turned back to his daughter. His searching gaze never faltered as he continued to look for his little girl.

"None of them have you for their father, Lee," Amanda reminded him. "They're Kings. She's a Stetson. She's just acting like you. Evie has to tie up all the loose ends before she'll move on. She's saying goodbye to somebody. You're just afraid that she's just found somebody more interesting than you for the moment. She'll be here soon." Amanda laughed at her husband. His over-protective nature was working on overdrive. It always kicked in worse when Evelyn was concerned than it ever did with any of her older children. She could tell it was taking everything he had not to go and look for their daughter. She placed a gentle hand on his arm. "Maybe Jamie or Kate has seen her."

"Jamie, do you know where she went?" Lee asked his stepson. Amanda's attempts at soothing his worry weren't enough to calm him down. The ceremony had concluded over half an hour ago, and there was still no sign of Evelyn.

"Sorry, Dad, I haven't seen her yet, either." Jamie answered. He and his older brother and sister had called Lee "dad" from about the time Lee and Amanda were married. Their real father had died when Jamie was two. "Don't worry about her though. Since Uncle Nick is here, security's so tight nothing could have happened to her, especially since you were in charge of setting it all up," Jamie inwardly laughed as he gently reminded his stepfather of his career. Lee and Amanda were the nation's top intelligence operatives, and Amanda's brother was the President of the United States. Therefore, it was needless to say that none of them ever went anywhere without significant security, and still, Lee was worried when his perfectly capable daughter was out of his sight for more than a few minutes. "Kate, do you know where Evie is?" Jamie asked his new bride.

"Didn't she go talk to your Uncle Nicholas?" came Kate's reply. "I thought I saw her head over that way after he finished his speech." Kate climbed up onto one of the white folding chairs beside her in order to get a better view of the crowd. "Here she comes!" she declared upon spotting Evelyn's brunette curls weaving through the crowd of students and their family members. Lee released a large sigh of relief, much to the amusement of the other three.

"Now, sweetheart," Amanda said calmly, placing a soothing hand on his arm, "Please don't hash her out about taking too long and making you worry."

"You know how much she hates it when you do that," Kate reminded him with a smile. He reluctantly agreed to behave. Amanda and Kate rarely failed to convince him to do anything.

"She did just graduate, Dad," Jamie added. Jamie ran across the lawn to meet his baby sister. "Hey, Squirt! Congratulations! You did it!" he told her, pulling her into a bear hug and lifting her off the ground.

"Thanks, Jamie," she said, laughing as put her back down. "No offense, but what are you doing here? I didn't think you were going to be back from Philadelphia until later tonight." Together, they walked the short distance back to their parents and Kate. Before Jamie had the chance to explain his presence, they had reached their family. "Daddy!" Evelyn exclaimed, running to her father.

"There's my Evie-Jayne!" Lee said as his daughter stepped into his waiting arms. "Way to go, Scout! You did great." He let her move to her mother. As he watched them, he was once again amazed at how much they were alike. The same brunette curls, the same laugh, the same talent for rambling when they were nervous or excited, the same grace and charm. Still, he was proud to say that his Evie-Jayne had his grey-green eyes, not Amanda's chocolate brown ones, and, of course, Amanda never let him forget that their daughter had his trademark "Stetson smile" that no one could say "no" to. It was no wonder that Evelyn had him and her older siblings wrapped around her little finger. It seemed that only Amanda was able to resist her daughter's charms.

"Hey, baby girl. I'm so proud of you," Amanda smiled, giving her daughter a hug. "I love you, sweetheart."

"Love you too, Mom." Evelyn then shifted her attention to the last person in the group. "Kate!" she squealed. "I didn't know you were coming! Why didn't you tell me? I thought you were still in Pennsylvania visiting your family."

"What? And miss seeing you graduate?" Kate laughed. "Not a chance. I wouldn't have missed this for the world. Jamie and I just thought we'd surprise you. We drove back this morning." Kate saw Evelyn as the little sister she never had, and Kate was like another big sister to Evie. "So, now you're all done. How does it feel?" Kate teased.

"Kate, I haven't even been 'done' for an hour yet!" came the exasperated reply. "Hey! Wait a minute. Where are Philip and Shannon, Liza and Brent, and the kids?" Evelyn inquired about her other older siblings and their families.

"They're the ones who aren't getting in for another couple hours," Amanda laughed. "And Grandma and Grandpa are going to meet us back at the house for the party. Their flight is supposed to arrive in a little less than an hour."

"How about we get a move on, then?" Jamie suggested.

"Good idea," Lee agreed as he began to guide his family towards the car. "Nicholas and Anna are coming over tonight, too, so we need to get back and make sure to let the security guys know." When they had all reached the SUV and climbed in, Lee slid easily into the driver's seat and started the ignition to head for home.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: **Please bear with me… it's going to take another couple chapters before it really gets going… 

Lee confidently and casually turned the car onto the private lane leading to the family's home, Liberty Gables. Amanda had called their security guards on the way home, so there was no longer the need to stop at the gate to let them know of the impending presidential visit. Lee pulled up to the house and parked behind Jamie's new flashy, red sports car and Kate's more reasonable, blue coupe. The Stetsons' faithful golden retriever, Molly, sat anxiously waiting on the front porch. Everyone climbed out of the SUV after the almost hour-long drive and made their way into the house. The ladies headed for the kitchen to start preparing the food for their barbeque, with Molly close on their heels. Jamie and Lee grabbed the suitcases out of the back of Kate's car and brought them inside. Kate and Jamie had arrived at the house just in time to leave for the ceremony, so they hadn't been able to bring their things in earlier. After settling their things in the basement suite that he and Kate were temporarily occupying while they waited for construction to be completed on their new house, Jamie headed out to the back terrace to start getting things ready for when their guests arrived. Lee headed to the kitchen to join the girls.

"Daddy, did you invite Uncle Billy and Aunt Francine to come tonight?" Evie inquired upon his arrival.

"Yes I did, Scout," he answered, using his favorite nickname for her. "But things have been pretty busy at work lately, so they're not going to be able to make it tonight, princess," he apologized. He smiled as he thought about Evie's fondness for his and Amanda's boss Billy Melrose and their coworker Francine Desmond. Over the years they had become like family, and attended every significant event in each of the King-Stetson children's lives that they could. Lee reached over the counter and grabbed a carrot stick off the veggie tray his daughter was preparing. His actions earned him a smack on the hand and reproving look from his daughter. Molly sat up from her position at Evelyn's feet, making sure that nothing had fallen to the floor that would make a good snack.

"Lee, why don't you go out back and see if Jamie needs any help? I'm sure he could use some," Amanda suggested, though it was really more of a command than a suggestion. "Girls, why don't you go relax? I can handle everything in here. You've both had a pretty busy day so far, and it's not over yet." She shooed the girls out of the kitchen and turned to finish the vegetable tray her daughter had started. After Kate and Evelyn left, Lee walked up behind his wife and wrapped his arms around her slender waist. "Lee Stetson! I thought I told you to go outside," Amanda reprimanded him.

"You did," he agreed, kissing the back of her neck. "But I wanted another one of these," he added quickly as he snagged another carrot from the tray and popped it into his mouth.

Amanda just laughed. "Sweetheart, you really do need to go help Jamie get everything ready," she reminded as she turned around in his arms to give him a quick kiss. "My parents are expected any minute."

"Not any minute, Amanda. We're already here." George West's warm baritone voice filled the room. Amanda and Lee turned to see her parents, George and Dotty West put down their suitcases as they entered the house.

"They're already here," Amanda smiled as she repeated her father's words to her husband. She turned her attention to her parents. "Mother, Daddy, how was your flight?" she asked as she gave them each a hug.

"It was fine, dear," Dotty answered. "I'm so sorry we couldn't make it to the ceremony. There were just no other flights. Was Evelyn terribly upset?"

"She's just glad you could make it at all, Mom," Lee said giving his mother-in-law a kiss on the cheek. "Dad, good to have you guys here." He greeted with a warm handshake.

"We're happy to be here, son," George affirmed. "Now, I think I heard orders telling you to go help my grandson outside. Let's leave the ladies here and go see if we can't give Jamie a hand and get everything ready before everyone else arrives." He and Lee exited the kitchen and headed to the back terrace. Molly trotted along behind.

"Mother, why don't you and I bring your things to your room? And then we can go find out what happened to the girls," Amanda suggested. "Everything is pretty much finished here."

It turned out that the girls had chosen to take advantage of the afternoon's beautiful weather and opted to work on their tans out by the pool. By the time Amanda and Dotty had finished getting the luggage settled, the men had finished cleaning and setting up the furniture on the terrace and had begun to cook the food on the grill. Molly kept a watchful eye on the group as she lay quietly in the grass. The phone rang inside and Molly let out a sharp bark to alert her owners. Jamie went into the house to get the phone. A few moments later he returned back outside.

"Who was that, Chief?" Lee asked.

"Charlie down at the front gate," Jamie replied. "Nicholas and Anna are on their way up, and he wanted to know when to expect Philip and Elizabeth. I told him they were coming any time now."

"Evie, why don't you girls go and get changed for dinner," Amanda called across the lawn. "Nick and Anna are going to be here in 5 minutes. And your brother and sister will be here shortly."

Kate and Evelyn reluctantly pulled themselves off of their lounge chairs to make their way to Evie's room. As they passed Jamie, he grabbed his new wife's arm and pulled her to him. "Just wanted to let you know I love you," he smiled and raised his eyebrows before lowering his lips to hers.

"Ewww! Gross!" Evelyn teased, and the couple broke apart. Blushing slightly, Kate hurried into the house. Evelyn gave her brother a smirk and turned to follow Kate, but not before Jamie was able to give her a solid swat on the behind. "Ow! Jamie, you jerk!" she yelled back to him.

"Brat!" he countered. When she turned around too stick her tongue out at him he just laughed. The two of them got a kick out of pretending to fight with each other like little kids.

"Jamie, be nice to your sister," Dotty reprimanded her grandson, not remembering her grandchildren's game.

"Sorry, Grandma," came the childlike reply. Even at 30 years of age, a reprimand from his grandmother turned him into a small boy.

"So, Jamie," George took over. "How's married life treating you? Glad you gave up your freedom?"

Jamie rolled his eyes. "Grandpa," he said, "I couldn't be more happy to have married Kate." His happiness was evident, as a wide, silly grin spread across his face.

"I'm glad you decided not to let her get away, Jamie. She's such a wonderful girl," Dotty added.

"And the fact that she's beautiful, and well-bred, and smart, and talented, and from Philadelphia's Main Line doesn't hurt either. Huh?" Jamie joked.

"Well, even if she wasn't Main Line she'd still be perfect, sweetheart." Dotty patted her grandson on the cheek. "Besides, Lee here's got enough money to keep all of you kids comfortable for the rest of your lives."

"Mother!" Amanda scolded. "We do not need to be talking about Lee's money!"

"I was joking, darling," Dotty retreated

"Your son brought it up, honey," Lee chuckled and reminded his wife. He wasn't bothered by his mother-in-law's comments. He walked up behind his wife and hugged her from behind. Amanda allowed herself to lean back into his chest, and she relaxed.

"I did not! Grandpa started it!" Jamie claimed in his defense.

"Started what?" Kate and Evelyn walked back out onto the terrace.

"The grill, Katie," Jamie supplied, not wanting to let his wife know that they had been talking about her prestigious and wealthy heritage. In a sheer stroke of luck, neither Kate nor Evelyn questioned his reply.

"You girls look lovely," Dotty complimented. Kate had changed into white Bermuda shorts and a blue polo shirt that matched her eyes. Her blonde hair fell in soft waves about her shoulders. Evelyn wore a green plaid, cotton sundress that clung just right to the gentle curves of her body before the billowing skirt came to rest just below her knees. The halter neckline drew just the right amount of attention to her graceful shoulders. She had pulled her hair up into a simple ponytail, but her dark curls still cascaded to her shoulders.

"Thank you, Grandma," Evelyn smiled, kissing her grandmother on the cheek. Just then Molly began to bark, and everyone turned to see what was bothering her.

"Hello!" Anna called from inside the house. "Is anybody home?"

"We're out on the back patio, Anna," Amanda called back, pulling out of her husband's embrace. Nicholas and Anna West made their way outside and entered a swarm of hugs and greetings. Just as everything was settling down, Molly took off running around the house, barking and wagging her tail the whole way.

"Molly! Come back here!" Lee called futilely after the retriever.

Evie laughed, "I'll go get her, Dad."

"Thanks, Scout."


	4. Chapter 4

Evelyn decided to take a short cut through the house instead of running around it, and as she reached the front door, she saw the cause for Molly's excitement. A minivan had pulled into the driveway. Out of the car stepped her older sister, Elizabeth, and her husband, Brent.

"Brent! Liza!" Evie yelled, half to get her sister and brother-in-law's attention and half to alert the rest of the family in the backyard of his arrival. She ran down the porch steps and into Brent's waiting embrace. "I'm so happy you're here," she told him as he whirled her around.

"Hey, Kid," Brent greeted. "Where is everybody?"

"They're out back," she answered, kissing him on the cheek. "Philip's not here yet." Evelyn let go of her brother-in-law and turned her attention to her sister. "Liza," she said. "I missed you so much." Even though there was a 13-year age difference between the two of them, they couldn't have been closer. "I can't wait to spend the week with you.

"I missed you, too, Angel." Elizabeth returned her sister's hug.

"Where are the girls?" Evie inquired about her nieces.

"They're in the car, Ev," Elizabeth replied as the rest of the family finally made it to the front lawn, enveloping Elizabeth and Brent in hugs and kisses. As everyone else was catching up, Evelyn moved to help Liza and Brent's little girls from their car seats.

"Hey, babies!" Evie greeted as she slid open the side door and began to unbuckle the four-year-old twins, Sarah and Emily.

"Aunt Evie, we're not babies," Emily refuted, jumping out of the van.

"Yeah! We're big girls!" Sarah clarified as she followed her sister.

"Oh! I forgot!" Evelyn feigned shock and embarrassment, holding her hand to her chest and gasping. She could only laugh at their comments. She watched as they ran to Jamie and Kate, each of whom scooped up one of the girls. Then, she turned to her littlest niece, 14-month-old Abigail.

"Hello, Abby," she cooed. "Can I still call you 'baby'?" Abigail simply laughed and clapped her hands together. Evie struggled for a moment with the buckle on the car seat, as she heard Philip's SUV pull up behind the van. She removed the baby from the car and placed her on her hip just in time to be pulled into a hug from her oldest brother.

"Hey, Munchkin," Philip greeted as he closed the van's door for his sister. "Hey, Abby, sweetie," he smiled, tickling the toddler. Abigail played shy, digging her face into Evelyn's shoulder.

"Abigail," Evie scolded, teasingly. "You know Uncle Philip!" She laughed and patted her niece's back. "I missed you, Philip!" Evelyn returned her brother's earlier hug.

"Aunt Evie!" came an excited shriek from the SUV, as Philip's wife, Shannon, helped their 5-year-old daughter, Alexandra, out of the vehicle. The child ran down the driveway towards her aunt. Evelyn quickly handed Abigail to Philip, so that she could run to meet Alexandra halfway.

"Lexi-lou," Evie smiled as she swooped yet another niece into her arms and spun her around. "I missed you, cutie pie."

"Guess what?" Alexandra squealed.

"What?"

"Mommy says I get to stay with you for a whole week!" The child's excitement was clearly evident.

"I know," Evelyn said, matching Lexi's enthusiasm. "We're going to have so much fun!" Evie started to walk back to the front porch to rejoin the rest of her family. "Hey Shann," she called to her sister-in-law as she passed her. She shifted her niece to her hip in order to free her hand so that she could wrap it around Philip's 7-year-old son. "Zachary," she lowered the tone her voice to lovingly greet her only nephew.

"Well, it appears that the gang's all here," Philip announced, still holding Abigail, though she started fussing when he reached the porch and she spotted her mother. He transferred the baby to Elizabeth's arms and gave his sister a kiss on the cheek.

"Shall we all go out to the back yard?" Amanda suggested. There was a chorus of eager, affirmative replies as the group made their way through the house.


	5. Chapter 5

Lee was the last one to reach the back terrace, and he paused for a moment to ponder just how lucky he was to deserve his family. If you had told him 25 years ago that he would be happily married with a family, he would have called you crazy. As he looked out over the group, his eyes fell on his wife. Amanda was the love of his life, and he hated thinking about how many times he had almost let her slip away. He couldn't imagine waking up in the morning without seeing her beautiful sleeping form beside him. Her dark hair still fell in curls past her shoulders, and her chocolate brown eyes often spoke more clearly than she could ever express in words. He laughed at the irony of their relationship though.

She had been a widowed, single mother of three beautiful, little kids when she first came to work for the Agency. Her first husband, Joseph King, had been a successful lawyer. Sadly, he was tragically killed in a car crash before Jamie had turned 2, and while Elizabeth and Philip were only 5 and 7 years old. Amanda King was forced to return to work, and through a roundabout series of events, began working at the Agency and quickly rose through the ranks to become a full agent. Their boss, Billy Melrose, saw Amanda's spark and natural talents and assigned her as Lee's partner, much to the cocky agent's chagrin. Their partnership was the root of many snide comments and jokes from co-worker Francine Desmond. It wasn't long though, before Lee and Amanda proved to be an unbeatable team, codenames Scarecrow and Duchess, respectively. And Francine soon came to call Amanda a friend. Over time, Lee learned to trust Amanda with more than he had ever trusted anyone else, and the two found themselves falling in love. Shortly after, they were married. The kids took to Lee immediately, and called him "dad" almost from the start. About a year and a half after they were married, the Stetsons welcomed another daughter, Evelyn Jayne.

Before their oldest children left the house, Lee and Amanda decided to move out of their small Arlington home and into a larger home further outside of Washington. They soon found and fell in love with Liberty Gables. The vast estate came complete with stables, tennis courts, a swimming pool, extensive rose gardens that were said to rival the White House's, and fully-staffed security headquarters at the front gate as well as a state-of-the-art security system. It was because of the security system that Nick and Anna were able to visit on a relatively frequent basis. When Nicholas became President, Liberty Gables became almost like a second Camp David. Over the years, the Gables had become a haven and retreat from the craziness of the world for the entire family.

Lee tore his eyes away from his beautiful wife and turned to his parents-in-law. Dotty and George West had taken him in as their own son when he married their daughter. George and Dotty couldn't have been more loving parents and grandparents. They lived for their family. Though their permanent address was in Florida, they spent most of their summers and every holiday in Virginia with their children and grandchildren. They were the only parents Lee really knew. His own parents had died while he was still a small boy. Being an only child, their vast fortune went entirely to him, making it so that he would never need to work a day in his life should he so desire, but Lee never rested on his parents' wealth as an excuse to not do anything.

Next, Lee looked at his brother-in-law, Nicholas West, President of the United States of America. It was odd that the President was family, but it made Amanda and Lee's jobs all the more intense. You couldn't ask for a better guy than Nick, though. He and his wife, Anna, didn't have any children of their own, so they poured themselves into the lives of their nieces and nephews. That's why Nick was so eager to give the commencement address for Evelyn's graduation. Had he been President when the boys graduated, he would have given their speeches as well. And, Anna was truly an angel. She performed the role of First Lady with more grace than Lee had ever seen it done, always ready with a reassuring smile and an encouraging word, no matter the circumstances.

Continuing his observations, Lee turned to his children. Starting with his oldest stepson, his eyes fell on Philip. Philip was the ruggedly handsome one of the boys, with his sandy brown hair and his brown eyes that matched his mother's. He was the self-appointed protector of the family. Lee chuckled at the thought; the Stetson-King family was one of the most protected families in the world. But Philip had assumed the role of protector when Joe died, and no one ever tried to take it away from him. Philip was a doctor by profession. While at medical school he met and fell in love with Shannon Edwards, a talented young journalist, and shortly after his graduation, they were married. Shannon was a tall, slender blonde, with bright blue eyes. Together, they made Lee and Amanda grandparents when their son Zachary was born 7 years ago. Zach was the spitting image of his father. Philip and Shannon gave Amanda and Lee a second grandchild in the form of beautiful, little blonde Alexandra. Lexi was a precocious 5 year-old who like nothing better than chasing after Kate, Jamie, and especially Evelyn.

Lee's gaze then fell on his stepdaughter, Elizabeth Joanna, known as Liza to her family. Liza was the absolute, spitting image of her mother. She was breathtakingly gorgeous, with long dark hair and deep brown eyes. It was no wonder then, that she captured her stepfather's heart when she was a little girl. Lee was just as protective with Elizabeth as he was with Evelyn.

Liza had found her perfect match in her husband Brent Miller. Brent was, by far, the heartthrob of the family. The epitome of tall, dark, and handsome and the perfect gentleman, he could have chosen any girl to be his wife. The family was overjoyed when Liza and Brent announced their engagement, for they had fallen in love with him as well. Evelyn thought of him as a brother, after all, she had known him since she was just 6 years old. The couple had met during undergraduate school and had gotten engaged the first year of law school. They were married before graduation. They had subsequently opened their own private law practice specializing in child rights.

Hearing children's laughter, Lee looked up to see Brent and Elizabeth's twins run across the yard. Sarah and Emily were the family's miracle girls. Born nearly two months premature, the doctors had initially told them that the girls would not make it. Thanks to unceasing prayers, the girls made it and could not be happier or healthier. They were the spitting image of their mother, and like many twins, never went anywhere without the other. They were adoring, big sisters to 14-month-old Abigail. Abby looked just like her daddy, but she was every bit a mommy's girl. Lee watched as Sarah ran up behind Jamie and grabbed him around his legs. Jamie quickly turned around and tossed the little girl into the air as she squealed in delight.

Lee's eyes then fell on Jamie, who was standing at the grill with Philip. Jamie was the youngest of the King children. Being closest in age to her, he was the most devoted to and protective of Evelyn. In fact, Jamie's protectiveness of her almost rivaled Lee's own. Jamie had grown into a handsome young man, with sandy blonde hair and grey eyes. His long, gangly junior-high body had developed into a strong, muscular physique. Jamie was an architect and was in the process of building his and Kate's dream home, and thus the newlyweds were living at Liberty Gables until construction could be completed.

In Lee's mind, Jamie couldn't have done a better job in choosing a wife; the new Mrs. Kate Alyssa Ashford King was an absolute darling. Beautiful, intelligent, and caring, the entire family had instantly fallen in love with her years ago when she and Jamie first met. With her engaging personality, crystal blue eyes, and golden blonde hair, this came as no surprise. Her great-great-grandfather had been a colleague of John D. Rockefeller at the turn of the century, and therefore, she was the heir to a sizeable fortune. She grew up as a member of Philadelphia's Main Line elite society, but her parents never allowed her to become a spoiled debutante who sat on a throne and was given whatever she wanted. And thus, she attended college and became a photographer by trade, though it was really more of a hobby than anything else. Instead, Kate devoted her time to charity work. But, photography was a passion that Kate shared with Evelyn. In fact, Kate was Evelyn's best friend, and the two were often inseparable.

At last Lee's attention was focused on his daughter, his pride and joy. She was the image of perfection in her father's eyes. Her brothers and sister adored her. Her mother was the only one who was, on a rare occasion, able to tell her "no," and those occasions were very few and far between. Amanda was overjoyed when Evelyn was born. She had another beautiful little girl. Amanda liked to joke that Evie wouldn't be able to date until she was 30 with her very protective brothers and her vigilant father, despite her older sister's efforts. Oddly enough, except for a brief boyfriend her senior year of high school, it had been true

Evelyn had run inside to get her guitar and was now quietly singing to Alexandra and Emily. She always dressed to the nines (even for a family picnic), and not a hair was ever out of place on her head, except for one rebellious, dark curl that fell across her forehead. Lee smiled as she reached up and tucked the hair behind her ear, not missing a strum on the guitar. She looked up and met his gaze with her own. Her grey-green eyes sparkled as she smiled up at him. His heart swelled with pride to think that his baby girl had graduated from college, and he found himself wondering where the time had gone. It seemed like only yesterday that the doctors had first placed her in his arms. When did she find the time to grow into the graceful and beautiful young woman that sat before him? She could do anything she set her mind to. She had solved cases for the Agency with ease, much to his frustration and with his protective nature running on overdrive the entire time. She had shown incredible aptitude and curiosity for the world of espionage, which didn't serve to help her father's mindset.

He slowly felt his over-protectiveness building once again, as he remembered what his boss had asked him just the other day. Billy had inquired as to what Evie was going to do after graduation. Lee replied that she didn't have any concrete plans for the time being, but that she was going to enjoy being done with school and take some time to relax. Then Billy proposed one thing Lee hoped he would never hear. Billy suggested that Evelyn come to work for the Agency. Francine was there and commented that Evelyn had a natural talent and that preserving national security was in her blood. It was true; with two top operatives for parents and the President for an uncle, but that didn't convince Lee that a career in intelligence was right for his daughter. Even Amanda thought that it might be a good idea; that they should at least see what Evelyn thought about it. Lee's mood turned even sourer. Billy chuckled at his agent's displeasure, knowing that deep down Lee knew that Evelyn would be perfect for the job, and picked up the phone to call the young lady he thought of as a granddaughter. Needless to say, Evie enthusiastically agreed to join her parents at the Agency. The Stetsons decided it would be best not to let the rest of the family in on Evelyn's career choice for the time being, just as they hadn't mentioned her previous involvement in Agency cases.

"Papa?" a small voice called. Lee was woken from his daydreaming by Zachary pulling on his hand.

"Yeah, buddy?" Lee answered, stooping down so that he could look his grandson in the eye.

"Uncle Jamie says the food is ready."

"Well, then, I guess we'd better hurry up and get some before everybody else eats it all, huh?" Lee chuckled, rising again to his full height. He shook his head in attempt to clear away the last few thoughts of Evelyn and the Agency. He took Zach's hand and together they walked to get their food. Amanda met them before they reached the grill. Zach released Lee's hand and ran to Shannon, who helped him fix a plate to eat. Amanda took Lee's arm and guided him away from the family again.

"Are you okay, sweetheart?" Amanda asked her husband. He nodded. "Are you sure? You seem kind of far away."

"I'm fine, Manda," he assured her, gently kissing her temple. "I was just thinking about how lucky I am to have such a perfect family. Thank you."

"If that's really what you're thinking about then I'm the one who should be thanking you," she returned, hugging him tightly and resting her head on his shoulder. "But I think I know you better than that, Stetson. No matter how perfect our family is," she paused, "I know that's not what you were just thinking about." Lee chuckled. She knew she was right, and there was no point in him trying to convince her otherwise. "You know, she's a smart girl, Lee," she said in reference to their daughter. "She's going to be okay. She's got the legendary Scarecrow for her daddy, and Billy wouldn't have asked for her if he didn't think she could handle it. He loves her almost as much as you do. She has helped us out before. And we don't need to tell the boys or Liza or my parents anything unless it becomes absolutely necessary."

Lee sighed. "But Amanda," he started, "she's only ever helped us on small assignments." He had behaved the same way when she had first started working with him. Why would she expect him to be any different with their daughter? Amanda just stared at him in a challenge. She dared him with her eyes to deny that Evelyn would make a fine intelligence operative. After a moment he gave in. "Okay, the Duchess wins again." She smiled, half in triumph and half in reaction to the affectionate use of her codename. "Let's go get some food before our children finish everything off." They walked back to their family arm in arm.


	6. Chapter 6

After dinner, Nicholas and Anna decided it was time to head back to Washington before the hour got too late. As the sun set the rest of the family gathered around a small bonfire roasting marshmallows and making s'mores. Before too long, it was decided that it was way past time for the kids to go to bed. The mosquitoes were coming out, so everyone headed inside. Molly followed faithfully behind Evelyn, and lay down for the night in the kitchen.

"Aunt Evie," Alexandra called. "Can I sleep in your room with you?" Not wanting her daughter to be a bother, Shannon shot Evelyn an apologetic glance.

"It's no problem, Shann," Evelyn assured. She turned to her niece. "Sure you can, Peanut. But you're going to have to take turns tomorrow night with Sarah and Emily. Okay, cutie?" Lexi nodded and went upstairs with her mother to get ready for bed. Zachary trailed along behind.

Elizabeth was having a more difficult time getting the twins to head upstairs, while holding a sleeping Abigail at the same time. Sarah and Emily were both insisting that they weren't tired. "Liza, let us help you," Kate offered as she carefully took the sleeping baby from Elizabeth's arms, and Jamie intercepted Sarah in her attempted escape. The little girl squealed with delight as he swung her up into the air. With Jamie's promise to tell them one of his famous bedtime stories, Kate was able to convince the girls it was time for bed, and she and Jamie followed the twins up to their room.

Liza gratefully left her daughters in their uncle and aunt's capable hands and returned to the rest of the family. As she passed through the kitchen she saw her parents finishing the last of the dishes from dinner. She joined her husband and her siblings and grandparents in the living room. Brent and Philip were sitting on the floor on opposite sides of the coffee table deeply engrossed in a game of chess. George and Dotty observed their grandchildren from across the room, half focusing on the television broadcast of the evening news. Evelyn lay sprawled out on the couch behind Brent. She watched their game and silently plotted the next few moves it would take to win, as she dangled her arm over the side of the couch and made lazy circles and shapes in the plush carpeting with her fingers. Elizabeth made her way to her Evelyn and sat at the end of the couch lifting her little sister's legs and placing them back down on top of her lap. Evelyn's concentration was broken only momentarily as Elizabeth began to massage the arch of her left foot.

Evelyn lifted her head and smiled, "That feels so good, Liza." Evelyn was a firm believer that her big sister gave the world's best foot massages. Evie grimaced slightly as Liza found a particularly tight spot, and then relaxed as she methodically worked out the knot.

"Well, kids," George stood up, the news program having ended. "Your grandmother and I are going to head to bed."

"We'll see you dears in the morning," Dotty added. She took her husband's waiting hand and together they left the room. Shannon passed them in the doorway, and she found a seat behind Philip. A few moments later, Amanda and Lee joined their children, followed shortly by Kate and Jamie. Everyone watched as Philip moved his queen, effectively trapping Brent's king.

"Check mate," Philip declared triumphantly.

Brent smiled, "You win, again. I swear, one of these days I'm going to beat you." Groaning, he lifted himself off the floor and tickled Evelyn's toes so that she would move her legs to make room for him on the couch. She reluctantly pulled herself into somewhat of a sitting position and wrapped her arms around her knees. Everyone sat in quiet, lost in his or her own thoughts.

A/N: Okay everybody, stuff starts happening in the next chapter... Sorry it took so long to get going... Please review... the faster you review the faster I load the next chapter!


	7. Chapter 7

Suddenly, the telephone's shrill ringing broke the calm silence. Jamie glanced at his wristwatch as Philip reached over to answer the call. " 11:54," Jamie told the others. "Who'd be calling us at this time of night?"

Philip shrugged his shoulders and lifted the receiver. "Hello," he said. "Yeah, just a second, here she is." Philip handed the phone to his sister. "Ev, it's Aunt Francine."

"Aunt Francine?" Evelyn repeated, not entirely sure why her "aunt" would be calling at midnight, and not entirely sure she wanted to know. Philip nodded. She lifted the receiver to her ear. "Hello," she said cheerfully.

"Hey, sweetheart," came Francine Desmond's warm response. "Congratulations on your graduation! Billy and I are so proud of you."

"Thanks, Aunt Francine. But I know you didn't call at midnight just to tell me that," Evelyn replied calmly and coolly. Francine's call was making her nervous, so she cut to the chase. "What's up?"

"Alright, you've got me," Francine gave in. "Give the phone to your dad." That girl is going to make one heck of an agent, she thought as she smiled to herself. She's got her mother's instincts, she silently added.

Evelyn did as she was told."She wants to talk to you," she explained.

"Francine?" Lee answered the phone. "What's going on?"

"We've got some trouble, Lee. Big trouble. Do you think you and Amanda could come up here tonight?" Francine could almost hear Lee audibly wince as her question registered.

"Francine, can't you find someone else? Elizabeth and Philip just got here. So did Amanda's parents." He didn't even want to know the details. His family was finally together for the first time in months and he was not about to leave on a case. Everyone else began to get anxious as they listened to what they could hear of the conversation. Lee began to pace the floor. Amanda stood up and walked towards her husband.

"I know they did, Lee," Francine continued. "And I'm sorry to tear you all apart, but Billy wants Scarecrow and Duchess. There's nothing I can do about it. Oh, and he wants Skylark, too, so bring Evelyn with you. It looks like she's going to be joining us sooner than we thought."

"Francine," Lee groaned. He paced out into the hallway so that he could talk without his family hearing. "I am not bringing Evelyn!" he lowered his voice to a whisper in order to keep from shouting. "And since when does she have a codename? She's barely 21 years old. She doesn't have enough experience. She is not coming!" He looked up to see that Amanda had followed him into hall.

"Lee, don't make me make it an order," Francine warned. "I'll tell all of you the details when you get here." She waited for him to respond. When he didn't, she hung up her end of the line, knowing it would be easier for him to process things if he weren't on the phone.

Lee sighed and pressed the talk button to hang up the phone. Amanda walked up to him and placed her hands on his arms. She looked into his eyes as she tried to figure out what exactly had happened. "Lee?"

"She wants us to come in tonight, Manda," he answered her unspoken question. "She wants Skylark, too."

"Skylark?"

"Evie," he responded solemnly. "What are we going to do?"

"We're going to take things one step at a time. Did Francine say what was going on?"

"She said she'd explain when we got there."

"Well," Amanda began, "I guess we're going to drive up there then. And we're going to bring Evie with us." She started to mentally process their options. "If they want us there tonight, then it must be big. I don't want everybody staying here when we don't know what's going on."

"We can bring everyone up to your brother's. Let's call Nick to let him know we're coming and then we'll go break the news to everyone else."

"Zach and Alexandra have been asleep for a while, but poor Kate and Jamie just got the girls to go down. And Mother and Dad have already gone to bed, too." Amanda sighed. Lee stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her.

"Alright then, you go wake up your parents. I'll call Nick, and then we can go explain things to our kids. We'll let the little ones sleep as long as we can." He pressed his lips to her forehead.

"Okay," Amanda agreed as she slowly removed herself from his embrace and went to go wake her parents.

"Everything's going to be okay, honey," Lee assured, giving her hand a final squeeze as she left. He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and dialed Nicholas and Anna's private number at the White House. He silently prayed that they would be awake.

"Hello?" came an alert response on the other end of the line.

"Anna? It's Lee. I didn't wake you did I?" Lee inquired.

"No, Lee, you didn't. I don't think any of us are going to be getting much sleep tonight. How much do you know?"

"Nothing at all. Francine didn't want to go into the details until we get there."

"I'm sure Billy and Francine will fill you in thoroughly. I won't explain what little _I_ know over the phone. You don't need to worry more than I know you and Amanda already are." Anna paused, but Lee didn't say anything. "You're going to bring everybody up here?" she asked, guessing the reason for his call.

"Actually, yes. Amanda and I haven't told them anything yet, but we're probably going to be heading out in half an hour or so."

"Okay, Lee. We'll see you in a little bit, then. We love you guys."

"Thanks, Anna. Love you, too. Bye." He hung up the phone and reentered the living room, glad to see that Amanda was back from explaining the situation to her parents. As he entered the room, he was met by the 7 inquisitive and rather worried stares of his children.

"Daddy?" Evelyn prompted.

"What's going on, Dad?" Philip inquired.

"Here's the deal, guys," Lee started confidently. "We're going to be going up to Nick and Anna's for a little while. Francine wants your mom and me to come in tonight." He sighed and relaxed slightly as it registered that everyone was still calm, except for Evelyn.

"What's wrong?" she wanted to know. Her attempt to rise from the couch was stopped by Brent's firm hold on her wrist. He pulled her back down, but did not release his grip on her arm. The longer everyone stayed relaxed, the smoother things would move.

"We don't know right now, baby," Amanda offered.

"When do we need to leave?" Kate asked.

"As soon as we can get our things together and get the kids in the car," Amanda explained. "You guys need to go with us on this one. We don't know anything, yet." She forced a small smile. All of them nodded their cooperation and stood to go throw their things together. Fully trusting their parents, they didn't ask questions; they did what was needed of them.

As Evelyn passed her, Amanda gave her daughter a hug. "Francine wants you to help with this one," she whispered so that no one else could hear. Evelyn pulled back from her mother's embrace and silently indicated that she understood.

"Let's try to keep Zach and the girls asleep, if it's possible," Lee suggested as everyone began to file out of the room.

**A/N:**** Hey all! Keep the reviews coming! Let me know what you think... The more feedback I get, the easier it is for me to write more so I can update more for you! Also, if you ever have any suggestions as to where you'd like to see the story head, let me know. I'll try to get the next chapter up soon, probably not until after the weekend though. Thanks for reading!**


	8. Chapter 8

Less than 15 minutes later, Amanda helped her parents put their things in their car so that they could start for Washington. She returned to the house where Molly sat waiting. "Hey, Molly-girl," she said patting the dog on the head. "Charlie promised to take good care of you while we're gone."

On the way upstairs to finish getting herself ready, she ran into Philip, Jamie, and Brent, who were already carrying packed suitcases out to the car. Luckily, nobody had had the time to fully unpack upon arrival, so there wasn't much to repack. As Amanda passed by Evelyn's room, Evie emerged with her bags ready. She gently shut the bedroom door behind her so she wouldn't wake Alexandra. Everyone had agreed with Lee that it would be best to let the little ones sleep for as long as possible.

"Do you have everything?" Amanda asked.

"I think so." Evie laughed softly in an attempt to ease some of the mounting tension. "I'm going to bring these out to the car," she said indicating her packed bags. She turned to head down the front staircase.

Amanda entered the master suite, her haven from the madness of the world. Tonight, however, no peace would be found there. She saw two open, partially packed suitcases in the middle of their king-sized bed. Lee had started her packing for her. She tossed a few forgotten items into her bag and moved to collect the necessary toiletries from the bathroom. Lee and Amanda completed their packing in silence, each weaving around the other to get what they needed. Finished, Amanda zipped her suitcase closed and set it on the ground for Lee to carry to the car.

"All set?" Lee asked as he walked around from his side of the bed to take her bag.

"Yeah," she answered. "Thanks, sweetheart." They moved towards the hallway.

"And your folks got off okay?" he inquired. She nodded. "And the kids are almost ready?" Amanda nodded again. She grabbed their briefcases as she passed the desk, and together they exited the bedroom.

Moments later, everyone was headed outside. Kate and Evelyn carried the twins to Brent and Liza's minivan and buckled them into their seats without waking them. Shannon followed behind with Alexandra in her arms, while Philip guided a half-sleeping Zachary out to the car after the girls. Brent and Jamie carried the last of the bags. Elizabeth was the last one down the stairs with Abigail against her shoulder. Liza softly hummed a lullaby and patted the infant's back to keep her from waking up.

Lee waited for Elizabeth to come outside and he closed the front door. He punched in the activation code for the security system so that the security officers at the front gate would know they were leaving. Charlie would be up to the house to take care of Molly and to check on things periodically.

"You have everything, Skipper?" Lee checked with his stepdaughter as she stepped off of the front porch.

"I think so, Dad." She placed Abigail into her car seat and gently closed the car door. She turned around to give her stepfather a hug. He returned her embrace and gently kissed her hair. "It's all going to be okay, Daddy," she whispered reassuringly as he let her go.

"Okay, everybody," Lee announced, "Let's head out." They climbed into their respective vehicles, and the King-Stetson family was on its way to Washington.

**A/N:** Hey all, sorry this one is on the shorter side... I wanted to update before my week gets crazy again. Please review -- questions, comments, suggestions... I'll try to update before the end of the week, although, depending on reviews I could be persuaded to update sooner... Let me know what you think... Thanks for reading, Jenn 


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Here's a quick, little update before the weekend (if Friday afternoon counts as 'before the weekend')... Sorry this is so short... I've been crazy busy. But since a couple of you asked so nicely, I thought I'd try to get something up for you. Thanks for the reviews. Keep 'em coming!**

"Hello, Mr. Stetson," greeted the security guard at the White House's Front Gate.

"Hank," Lee nodded his greeting.

"Mrs. West called down a while ago to let me know you were coming," Hank explained. "She said they'd be waiting for you."

"Thanks, Hank." Lee drove his car through the gate. Hank waved to Elizabeth, Philip, and Jamie as they each passed through the gate after their stepfather. He felt sorry for the family. Nothing ever seemed to go easily for them, especially since Nicholas West was sworn into his presidential office 5 years ago. But they were coping, and they were handling everything life threw at them with poise and dignity, clinging to each other when things got tough. Being part of the "first family" did have its perks, though. For most families going to Uncle Nick's house meant going to a suburban neighborhood with white picket fences and modest, two-story homes. For the King-Stetson clan, it meant 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue and the most famous residence in the United States.

The small caravan pulled up to the front steps of the White House. The ignitions were turned off and the men quickly opened the trunks and backs of their vehicles to begin carrying luggage inside. Amanda immediately made her way inside to inquire after her parents. Anna met her at the door and began to welcome her family. Elizabeth and Shannon began to unbuckle their children from their car seats. Kate and Evelyn gathered the still-sleeping twins back into their arms and brought them up to bed for a second time that night. Liza hugged Abigail close to her chest as she quickly checked the van to make sure they had removed everything. Shannon lifted Alexandra from the car, hushing her back to sleep as she began to stir awake. Nicholas came out of the House to help Shannon bring Zach up to bed. He picked up the boy with ease and shut the car door. When Nick reentered the house, Philip took his son from his uncle and put him to bed.

Amanda and Lee were left alone in the front entrance with Nick and Anna. Shortly, Evelyn reemerged from the upstairs bedrooms and joined her parents in the foyer. She stood in between her father and uncle. Nick wrapped his arm around her shoulders and held her close.

"Everybody else is going to bed," Evelyn announced. "I didn't tell them I was going with you."

"They're not going to be happy when they wake up tomorrow morning and find you gone," Lee said. "You'll break the news to them gently in the morning?" he asked Nick and Anna. They nodded.

"Don't worry," Anna assured in her characteristic fashion. "We'll handle it."

"Well, we'd better be going," Amanda decided, taking Lee's hand.

Nicholas gave Evie one last reassuring squeeze. "Be careful," he warned. "I want all of you back in one piece." He kissed the top of Evelyn's head. Anna wished them all luck. The Stetsons turned to leave and reluctantly left behind the all feelings of being safe and secure.

**A/N: I'll try to update again soon (hopefully by Tuesday)... This weekend and next week are looking pretty busy... However, more encouragement equals more inspiration to write more! Questions, comments, suggestions? All are welcome! Thanks! -- Jenn**


	10. Chapter 10: Author's Note

**A/N:**Hey everybody! Sorry it's taken me so long to update. I started school up again, and it's taken up all my free time. The other problem is that I have what quite possibly could be the worst case of writer's block in the world! And I'm really not joking, either. I have ideas as to where I want the story to end up, but my biggest problem right now is that I'm not really sure how to get them there. Mainly, I'm not completely sure of where to go next. ANY suggestions are completely and totally welcomed and encouraged. Please PM me!! Thanks so much for your continued interest in the story… hopefully my creative brain will jumpstart itself and get us moving again shortly!  Thanks again! --Jenn


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